Lawmakers alarmed at push to sell CNN

Last edited Thu Nov 9, 2017, 10:05 AM - Edit history (1)

Source: Politico



President Trump, who has repeatedly derided CNN's coverage of his administration as 'fake news,' has loomed over the deal since the companies announced it.

By STEVEN OVERLY 11/08/2017 08:38 PM EST Updated 11/08/2017 10:25 PM EST

Even critics of AT&’s proposed mega-merger with Time Warner expressed alarm Wednesday at allegations that President Donald Trump's Justice Department is intervening in the deal for political reasons — namely his oft-expressed complaints about CNN.

"Any indication that this administration is using its power to weaken media organizations it doesn’t like would be a profoundly disturbing development," Sen. Al Franken (D-Minn.) said, after POLITICO and other news outlets reported that the DOJ had been pressing the companies to unload the Time Warner-owned news network.

Even so, Franken said he’s sticking by his original opinion of the $85 billion merger — that it would create a "massive corporation that would wield entirely way too much power."

Sen. Brian Schatz (D-Hawaii) told POLITICO that the DOJ's reported actions "merit investigation," and that senators should ask Attorney General Jeff Sessions about it next week.

Read more: https://www.politico.com/story/2017/11/08/cnn-time-warner-merger-congress-244725?lo=ap_f1